Nubian ibex are likely to compete with domesticated goats (Capra hircus) and camels (Camelus dromedarius) as well as other herd animals for food and habitat. Foraging ibex in Israel have been recorded damaging orchards and other crops.
Probable predators of Nubian ibex include leopards (Panthera pardus), wolves (Canis lupus), striped hyenas (Hyaena hyaena) and humans. Young ibex may also be preyed on by golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) and eagle owls (Bubo bubo). Proximity to cliff edges directly reduces the risk of predation, and Nubian ibex therefore spends much of their time on rock faces. The risk of predation for adult males is low; hence they may live in smaller group sizes.
Known Predators:
Nubian ibex are one of the smallest ibex species and are sexually dimorphic. A female ibex is, on average, about one-third the size of a male. Males have an average weight of 62.5 kg, females average 26.5 kg. Shoulder height averages 75 cm in males and 65 cm in females. Total body length is 125 cm in males and 105 cm in females.
The overall color of Capra nubiana individuals is a uniform tan (matching the surrounding rocky arid environs) with patches of black and white on the legs and a white underbelly. There is a color change that begins in August, where males become dark brown to black on their necks, chests, shoulders, sides of the belly, front side of the thighs, and upper forelegs. Males have long dark beards, which are used for scent marking and to excite the females during rutting. Older females also grow beards.
Both males and females have horns, which are used for fighting, sexual selection, and territorial defense. A male’s horns are large, dark, and semi-circular, with annual rings on the back. The annuli grow twelve to twenty centimeters during the first five years of life, and then grow between two to four centimeters per year thereafter. Total length of the horns may reach 120 cm. The horns on an individual may have shorter annuli because of physical hardships during periods of drought or disease. The horn length in females reaches around 35 cm.
Range mass: 25 to 70 kg.
Range length: 105 to 125 cm.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: male larger; sexes colored or patterned differently; male more colorful; ornamentation
The oldest known individual of Capra nubiana lived 17 years in captivity. It is thought, however, that wild animals have much shorter life spans. Capra ibex, a related species, has been reported to live 10 to 16 years in the wild.
Range lifespan
Status: captivity: 17 (high) years.
Average lifespan
Status: captivity: 18.9 years.
Nubian ibex inhabit mountainous regions including gorges, outcrops, and scree areas in arid regions with sparse vegetation. They occur at varying elevations, from sea level to 3,000 meters. Generally, Nubian ibex inhabit the most remote, highest, and steepest cliffs.
Range elevation: 0 to 3000 m.
Habitat Regions: temperate ; terrestrial
Terrestrial Biomes: desert or dune ; mountains
Capra nubiana, or the Nubian ibex, is the only ibex species adapted to life in hot, arid regions of the world. Capra nubiana was once widespread in the mountainous regions of northeastern Africa and the Middle East. Estimates of the full extent of this geographic range are based on ancient drawings and bone remnants. Presently, C. nubiana occurs in isolated populations in pockets of the coastal regions of northeastern Africa, the Sinai Peninsula, and the southeastern tip and western portion of the Arabian Peninsula.
Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native )
Due to heat and water constraints, Nubian ibex usually feed during the night or twilight hours, and occasionally during the day. They descend to lower elevations to feed. The main diet includes herbs, shrubs, tree foliage (especially Acacia), buds, fruits, and occasionally grass. Nubian ibex especially prefer cadaba (Cadaba spp.) and camphorweed (Pluchea spp.). Nubian ibex forage in patches of high quality and where water is in close proximity. They drink water every day if available.
Plant Foods: leaves; wood, bark, or stems; seeds, grains, and nuts; flowers
Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore )
Caprinae as a group is catholic in their diet, exhibiting a large range of foraging niches, with a generalized and adaptive diet. They often live in habitats with low primary productivity. Nubian ibex are expanding specialist feeders, meaning individuals forage selectively on plants of higher quality in large patches, and hence increase herbivory on all the plants in the patch.
Grackles (Quiscalus sp.) have been known to groom Nubian ibex in a reciprocally beneficial act. They eat insects and parasites on skin of the ibexes.
Mutualist Species:
Nubian ibex have been hunted for meat and trophies, and even used as an offering during the Dynastic period in Egypt. Hunting is now illegal in most of the countries in which C. nubiana occurs. However, poaching is still widespread and protected areas are poorly enforced. Nubian ibex have been extirpated in Syria and Lebanon due to over-hunting. Ziswiller 1967 (as cited by Osborn 1998) lists several folk uses from nearly every part of the ibex for humans. Folk uses include the blood for gall stone easement, the heel bone for diseases of the spleen, feces for anemia, the heart for strength, and stomach fluids for many healthful properties.
Positive Impacts: body parts are source of valuable material; ecotourism ; source of medicine or drug ; research and education
Capra nubiana is listed as an endangered species with an EN C2a classification on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. EN means endangered, and C2a means that the the population estimate is less than 2,500 mature individuals, with no subpopulations greater then 250 mature individuals and an overall declining population trend. Nubian ibex are not listed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) or the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Nubian ibex are protected in Israel, Jordan, and Oman. The population is thought to be at carrying capacity in Israel, but otherwise critically endangered in other areas. Threats to C. nubiana include habitat loss (via agriculture, livestock, and infrastructure development), hunting, pollution, and competition with non-native species. Protecting corridors which connect populations is particularly important for preventing population bottlenecks in this species.
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: no special status
State of Michigan List: no special status
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: vulnerable
Goats and ibexes are considered relatively non-vocal, but they have evolved a complex system of visual signals for aggression. Courtship displays are the most intensively studied component of communication in caprines, and are largely similar across all members of this groups. Males will display to other males with their horns, body movements, tongue or lips. They will also display to females. Females often bleat during estrus, and males may make several clicking, nasal sounds, or bleats. The rump patch is shown when animals are indicating submissiveness.
During the rut, males will attempt to gain access to females by sniffing them, licking their anal areas, or nuzzling. If a female urinates, the male will then sniff her carefully, often curling his upper lip, which is a posture known as flehmen that further opens his olfactory senses. Non-receptive females will refrain from urinating, and simply continue grazing or occasionally run away.
Horns are used for fighting, specifically for ramming rather than puncturing. Typically two males will spar, clashing their horns together to establish dominance. Occasionally females will also use their horns for aggression towards upstart young males or other females. Sparring between individuals seldom results in serious damage or bodily injury.
Communication Channels: visual ; tactile ; acoustic ; chemical
Other Communication Modes: pheromones ; scent marks
Perception Channels: visual ; tactile ; acoustic ; chemical
Capra nubiana was first described by F. Cuvier in 1825 as a subspecies of Capra ibex, and synonyms for the species include C. arabica, C. beden, C. mengesi, and C. sinaitica. In 1987 C. nubiana was formally recognized as a distinct species.
In biomes with rich, lush habitats, caprines are typically replaced by cervids and larger bovids. In Africa, gazelles dominate the drier open steppes and grasslands. Thus Caprinae species have adapted to life in difficult environments. In a recent controversial study by Ropiquetet al. (2006), it was proposed that the common ancestor of wild goats arose from interspecific hybridization between ancestral goats (proto-Capra) and ancestral tahr (proto-Hemitragus). The product was a goat with a mitochondrial genome better adapted to high altitudes and with more efficient mitochondria, thus allowing them a special advantage to life in the mountains.
Despite their endangered status and elusive nature, Capra nubiana populations have become major tourist attractions in several areas. At the oasis of Engedi, on the Dead Sea, a certain subpopulation has become rather accustomed to humans, and males often predictably venture to a special watering hole popular with tourists.
During most of the year females and their young, as well as males under three years old remain in isolated herds of ten to twenty individuals. Adult males congregate in bachelor groups, displaying a marked system of dominance hierarchy. Males and females come together for the rutting season around October. The rutting season may continue into December. The mating system is polygynous, with only a few males siring many of the young.
Throughout most of the year older males are solitary. They join females during the rut and try to drive off other males. Males will follow individual females and try to disrupt female herds. During the rut courting males seldom feed and expend much energy fighting or mating, resulting in severe deterioration of their physical condition. Both sexes exhibit crouching behaviors, tongue-flicking, and scent marking on the tail, beard and chest as part of their reproductive behavior. Reproductive success of male goats is directly correlated with body strength and horn size. Males often engage in forceful fights, whereby they crash against one another with their horns and try to overpower their opponents. Nubian ibex will erect the long dark hairs of the back while fighting. Females typically mate two or three times during estrous, which typically lasts 24 hours. Males will often become excited during the rutting season, and spontaneous ejaculation has been reported, as well as masturbation via taking the penis tip in their mouths.
Mating System: polygynous
Gestation lasts 150 to 165 days, after which the young (usually one, but occasionally two) are born between May and June. Females reach sexual maturity at two years, and males at age three to six. For the first several days of their life, the kids are in hiding before joining their mother.
Breeding interval: Nubian ibex breed once a year during the rutting season.
Breeding season: The breeding season is from October to December.
Range number of offspring: 1 to 2.
Average number of offspring: 1.
Range gestation period: 5 to 5.5 months.
Average weaning age: 3 months.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 2 years.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 3 to 6 years.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; viviparous
Nubian ibex exhibit a high degree of parental investment in their offspring. Time to weaning averages two months. Over this period the females nurse their young daily and gradually teach them to forage independently and establish their position in the social hierarchy. Female ibex will only nurse their own offspring and are hostile to alien kids or females. This is presumably a result of the high reproductive effort that mothers invest in their offspring.
Most species of ungulates in mountainous regions depend on steep terrain to avoid predation. A grouping pattern unique to Nubian ibex among all other caprines has been observed in herds in the Avedat Canyon in Israel. Females leave their kids unattended in nursery groups in a steep-walled canyon with many other kids. The nursery is most likely an accidental trap that the kids have fallen into and cannot surmount the cliff walls to climb out. Mothers visit the nursery often to feed the kids, which stay in the nursery until they are mature enough to follow along on the steep cliffs.
Parental Investment: precocial ; pre-fertilization (Provisioning, Protecting: Female); pre-hatching/birth (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female); pre-weaning/fledging (Provisioning: Female, Protecting: Female)
The Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) is a desert-dwelling goat species (Genus Capra) found in mountainous areas of northern and northeast Africa, and the Middle East. It was historically considered to be a subspecies of the Alpine ibex (C. ibex), but is now considered a distinct species. The wild population is estimated at 4,500 mature individuals.[1]
Nubian ibex are the smallest ibex species on Earth, following Bergmann's Rule. They stand around 65–75 cm (2.1–2.6 ft) tall at the shoulder. They are sexually dimorphic: males are significantly larger than females, with males averaging 52-74.7 kg (114.6-164.7 lb) and females 25.3-32.7 kg (55.8-72.1 lb).[2][3]
They are a light tan color, with a white underbelly; males also have a dark brown mane down their backs. Their legs have a black and white pattern. They have a lighter rump with a dark brown tail. Males begin growing a beard at age 2 or 3, which continues to grow longer and darker as they age. During the autumn breeding season, mature males grow a "rutting fur" on their breast and sides which is very dark brown. It appears in October in 3-4 year old males, but it may appear as early as July or August in older males age 6 and up. However, not all males develop rutting fur, even at a mature age.[2]
Nubian ibexes have long, thin horns that extend up and then backwards and down. In males, these reach around 1 m (39 in) in length, while in females they are much smaller, reaching around 30 cm (12 in).[4] Male horns are thicker than female horns, and grow large bulges which prevent the horns from sliding while the males are locked in combat.[2] Male horn growth plateaus around age 7-8, where as female horn growth plateaus around age 4-6. There is a significant relationship between the individual's age and the number of horn ridges.[5]
Historically, Nubian ibex were distributed across the Middle East and Northeastern Africa.[1]
Its range today is within Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Israel, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, and Sudan. It was extirpated in Lebanon, though a captive breeding and reintroduction process is underway.[6] It has also been extirpated in Syria. Its presence and population is uncertain in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Yemen.[1]
Nubian ibex live in rough, dry, mountainous terrain, where they eat mainly grasses and leaves, especially from Acacia trees (Genus Vachellia). They forage for food on the ground and may also rear up on their hind legs to reach leaves in trees. They can climb into trees while feeding.[2] They reduce feeding on plants with strong defenses, such as tannins and thorns.[7] Preferred plants vary depending on the amount of rain; rainy winters result in higher feeding preference for annual plants over perennials.[8] Ibex preferentially feed in spaces that are close to cliffs where they can easily escape predators, demonstrating a Landscape of Fear: the farther from cliffs, the more vigilant ibex become.[9][10] Ibex will also spend more time feeding in green patches with high nutritional quality and that are closer to water sources.[11]
They are preyed upon by Arabian leopards (Panthera pardus nimr),[12] Arabian wolves (Canis lupus arabs),[13] golden jackals (Canis aureus), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), and bearded vultures (Gypaetus barbatus). When alarmed, they emit a shrill call to alert other ibex of danger. They share their habitat with numerous other herbivores, including rock hyrax (Procavia capensis), Arabian oryx (Oryx leucoryx), gazelles (Genus gazella), and Asiatic wild ass (Equus hemionus).[2] Nubian ibex have a mutualistic relationship with Tristram's starling (Onycognathus tristrumil), a small bird that eats the parasites on the ibex's skin.[14]
They may host parasites including: the ibex fly (Lipoptena chalcomelanea), blood sucking lice (Linognathus africanus and Damalinia sp.), ticks (Hyalommina rhipicephaloides, Boophilus annulatus, and others), mites (Psoroptes cuniculi and Sarcoptes scabiei), biting flies (Oestrus sp.) and fleas.[2][15] They have also been found with brain cysts caused by the parasite Taenia multiceps.[16]
Nubian ibex have been detected with a strain of the malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) virus group of ruminant rhadinoviruses, closely related to caprine herpesvirus 2 (CpHV-2) found in domestic goats.[17]
Ibex are social and herds tend to consist of females, young, and males up to the age of about three years. Herds are typically up to 20 individuals, but may reach as high as 50. Female herds are often composed of related individuals that follow a dominance hierarchy.[2][18][3] The males are solitary or form more transitory bands of up to eight individuals. During the breeding season, males join the female-based herds for the six- to eight-week rut. Large males then do battle with much clashing of horns.[4]
Nubian ibexes are diurnal, meaning they are active during the day, and rest at night. Like other ibex and goats, Nubian ibex spend much of their time on and around cliffs, which offer safety from potential predators. Ibex perceive a greater predation risk as they move farther away from cliffs.[10] They climb and leap with ease, spanning several meters horizontally and vertically in a single leap. Ibex typically traverse cliffs in single file when possible, and keeping relatively horizontal. Their repeated movement over time creates well-worn hillside trails.[2]
Ibex migrate throughout the day and throughout the year. During the day, they navigate between food patches as they forage. They may rest throughout the day to chew their cud, especially around midday.[2] Additionally, on cold winter days, ibex in Egypt have been documented following the path of the sun each day to stay warm.[19] At night, they sleep on cliff sides in small depressions that they dig. These shallow diggings create microhabitats where a diverse range of seedlings can germinate, adding to the habitat's diversity.[20] In winter and early spring, the Middle East's rainy season, ibex often disperse to open plateaus where they can feed on new plant life. In the hot, dry summer, they congregate around shaded oases with water and greenery.[2]
Mating season is typically in October and November, during which a dominant male will pursue several females. Males produce a strong secretion when in estrous. As they pursue potential mates, they smell the females' anal region with lip curled up (Flehmen). Males can reach breeding maturity as young as 2 years, but may not be allowed to mate until age 5 when they are strong enough to fend off rival males. Females can breed as young as six months old, but often don't breed until age 1-3.[2] Studies suggest that some Nubian ibex subpopulations are developing a second mating season in the spring, in response to hyper-arid climates.[21]
Gestation lasts 5 months. Litters of 1-2 kids are born between March and July, although the majority of births are synchronized in a 3-4 week period that peaks in late March and April. Females leave the herd to give birth in a secluded space. Newborns can stand within 15 minutes of birth, and can nurse within two hours. The mother and young rejoin the herd in a few days, joining other mothers and young to form a crèche for several weeks.[2] Leaving kids in a sheltered crèche allows mothers to seek out richer food patches and spaces that are farther from cliffs, compared to mothers that keep their kids with them at all times.[22] Kids are weaned around 4 months old. Females reach mature size at age 3-4, while males reach it around 6 years old. Nubian ibex can live up to 12 years in the wild and 18 years in captivity.[2]
The earliest remains of Nubian ibex in Israel date back approximately 150,000 years.[2] In spite of the growing presence of livestock like domesticated goats over the last 10,000 years, Nubian ibex in the region have remained present throughout this time.[23] However, their abundance has fluctuated over time in places like Ein Gedi, where they showed an increase in population in the Late Holocene, between 949 and 5,164 years ago.[24]
The Nubian ibex shares a genus, Capra, with all other ibex and goats. Phylogenetic reconstructions of the ibex/goat family tree have mixed results, with different studies reaching different conclusions.
One Y-chromosomal DNA analysis suggests two clades (subgroups) within the genus: The first clade contains domestic goats (C. hircus), bezoars (Capra aegagrus), and markhors (C. falconeri). The second clade contains all other ibex, including the Nubian ibex. In this analysis, the Nubian ibex is monophyletic (most closely related) to the Siberian ibex (C. sibirica).[25]
However, when the same study analyzed Mitochondrial DNA, it was suggested that all species in genus Capra are in one clade except for the Siberian ibex. The study's authors provide potential explanations for this discrepancy, including a possible ancient hybridization of the ancestors of the two Y-chromosome clades.[25]
A separate mitochondrial study suggests that the Nubian ibex forms a separate, more ancient offshoot from most other ibex and may be monophyletic with the Siberian ibex.[26]
An additional Y-chromosomal DNA and mitochondrial DNA study concludes that Nubian ibex are most closely related to Ethiopia's Walia ibex (C. walie), and they may have separated about 800,000 years ago.[27]
Another study used multidimensional scaling (MDS) to suggest that Nubian ibex are more closely related to Alpine ibex and European ibex than to all others.[28]
Genetic analyses identify 22 positively selected genes in Nubian ibex, when compared to domestic goats (Capra hircus). The genes affect such functions as immune response, protein ubiquitination, olfactory transduction, and visual development. 3 of the genes have evolved to develop skin barriers that mitigate solar radiation in the hot desert.[29] They also have copy number variations (CNVs) of genes associated with xenobiotic metabolism and energy metabolism, due to processing desert plants with many secondary metabolites.[30] Additional solar radiation mitigation adaptations include genes associated with hair follicle development and increased DNA repair mechanisms. Nubian ibex also have CNVs for expanded toxic compound removal, to deal with more toxic foods than other goat species eat.[31]
The genetic makeup of Nubian ibex as a species has remained unchanged for at least 2,000 years.[32]
Nubian ibex vision is adapted to navigating visually on mountainous terrain. A study of their retinal ganglion cell density shows that they share many traits with other artiodactyls: a temporal area, horizontal streak, and dorsotemporal extension. They have a potentially unique dorsotemporal area of high ganglion cell density that benefits vision in the lower visual field, helpful for navigating varied terrain. Additionally, they have a more loosely organized horizontal streak than other hoofed animals. Their tapetum lucidum is morphologically similar to that of goats. It is blue-green, and enhances their night vision and vision of the horizon. The spatial resolving power in their temporal area is 17 cycles/degree, meaning that they can distinguish objects as small as 3mm (0.125 inches) from a distance of up to 30 meters (98.43 feet), allowing for food identification and predator detection.[33] The Nubian ibex's standard intraocular pressure is estimated to be 17.95+4.78 mmHg.[34] They produce relatively low rates of tears compared to other animal species, leaving them highly susceptible to infection.[35]
Blood composition in Nubian ibex changes throughout the year. In the dry summer season, there is an increased concentration of hemoglobin, glucose, and total plasma protein. In the winter rainy season, there is an increase in blood urea nitrogen, albumin, and globulin. Some components of the blood remain consistent year round, including calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus.[36]
Nubian ibex can balance their body's nitrogen levels on poor quality diets by reabsorbing large quantities of their bodies' urea.[37] This slows their metabolism when only poor quality food is available, but Nubian ibex can regain lost body mass rapidly upon returning to a higher quality diet.[38] Nubian ibex and other desert-dwelling ungulates have elevated isotopes of Nitrogen (δ15N) due to their diet of plants that grow in denitrified soils.[39]
Most hematological, serum biochemical, and electrolyte values are consistent between males and females. However, females have significantly higher red blood cell counts, hematocrit, total leucocyte (white blood cell) counts, and total serum bilirubin than males.[40]
In the 1970s, researchers in Lahav, Israel, began breeding and studying hybrids of Nubian ibex and domestic goats, called "Yaez" ("יעז") [41] In one study of these hybrids, plasma testosterone peaked in August and testes size peaked in September–October.[42] In a study on reproduction, researchers found that females were more likely to abort their young if they were first-time pregnancies and triplets (as opposed to smaller litters). Mortality rates of young were highest in spring and lowest in winter. Kid mortality rates increased with a higher proportion of ibex genes.[43] When researchers compared the growth rate of male goat and Yaez kids, they found that young goats experience a higher growth rate in spring while Yaez kids grow faster in summer.[44]
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has classified the Nubian ibex as "vulnerable" on the basis that fewer than 10,000 mature individuals remain and the population is declining. Threats faced by the animal include competition with livestock for water and fodder, hunting pressure, habitat fragmentation, and habitat destruction.[1]
Ecotourism and outdoor recreation may disturb ibex in nature reserves, causing them to change their behavior in order to avoid people. When possible, they seek out water sources with lower human presence, and more readily abandon high quality food patches when human disturbance is high.[45][46] Human presence in nature reserves may also contribute to decreased reproductive rates in ibex; when tourists stopped visiting Israel's Ein Avdat Nature Reserve during COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020, the ratio of young to female ibex more than doubled.[47]
Conversely, some ibex have become habituated to human settlements and popular nature reserves, leading to potential conflict. Habituation is demonstrated by decreased vigilance in areas with greater human presence.[48] These subpopulations seek out towns due to abundant food, shelter, and protection from predators. Their habituation leads to property damage, consumption of harmful substances like garbage, and reduced antipredator responses. Ibex have been recorded standing on vehicles and entering buildings.[49]
As of 2020, the IUCN and other sources estimate wild Nubian ibex populations by country as follows:
Two main populations are present, one in the Eastern Desert to the east of the Nile River and one in the South Sinai. The Eastern Desert population contains 400 - 1,000 individuals in reserves that include Elba Protectorate and Wadi Gemal Protected Area. A further 200-250 individuals reside in the South Sinai region, sheltered by the St. Katherine Protected Area, Taba Protected Area and Abu Gallum Protected Area.[1] The populations are declining due to poaching.[50] Egypt's Nubian ibex are officially protected by Agricultural Law No. 53/l 966 and amendment 1012 July 1992.[51]
Due to civil unrest, no recent population estimates have been documented.[1] On 16 March 1959, the British established the Yob Wildlife Reserve in northern Eritrea specifically to protect significant populations of Nubian ibex in the area.[52][53]
Due to civil unrest, no recent population estimates have been documented.[1]
The historically dense ibex population was decimated in the wake of the First World War when the sudden availability of rifles enabled Bedouin to hunt them to near extinction. After the establishment of the State of Israel, when hunting was outlawed and nature reserves were created in which they were protected, the ibex population rebounded.[55][56]
Three primary ibex populations exist in Israel: in the Negev Highlands, Eilat Mountains, and the Judean Desert, which traverses into the Palestinian West Bank.[1][57] There is habitat connectivity between these population centers, with an especially strong wildlife corridor between the Judean Desert and Negev Highlands. This allows for gene flow.[58][59] An additional small population was established in the Golan Heights through reintroduction in 1970.[2] The Judean Desert population is home to approximately 800 individuals and the Negev Highlands are inhabited by around 400. Israel's population is relatively stable and strongly protected, with over 80% of the population range located within wildlife reserves.[1] Israel's Nature and Parks Authority conducts an annual population count using visual surveys and trail cameras.[60] Israel's Nubian ibex are officially protected by the 1955 Wildlife Protection Law.[56]
Once nearly extirpated in the country, Jordan has re-established their ibex population through captive breeding and reintroduction programs. Population strongholds exist within protected areas, including around 250 ibex in Dana Biosphere Reserve, 200 in Wadi Mujib Biosphere Reserve, and 100 in Wadi Rum World Heritage Area. Additionally, at least 60 ibex have been released into the wilderness to join other small populations. Reports suggest that the population is growing within protected areas.[62] Their main threat is hunting.[61][1] Jordan's Nubian ibex are officially protected from hunting under Agriculture Law No. 13, Appendix I.[63]
Nubian ibex have been extinct in Lebanon since the mid-19th Century. In 2017, a small herd was brought to Al Shouf Cedar Nature Reserve from Jordan to re-establish a breeding population. Now the herd is living semi-wild in an enclosure within the reserve, with plans to fully release them into the wild in the near future.[6][64][65]
Oman's largest ibex population stronghold is in the Dhofar Mountains, with 600-1,100 individuals. Another 100-250 ibex live in and near Al Wusta Wildlife Reserve, in the Huqf Escarpment and Janabi Hills. The population is in decline due to poaching, habitat degradation, and human expansion.[1] Oman's Nubian ibex are protected under Ministry of Diwan Affairs, Ministerial Decision No. 4 (1976).[1]
Small ibex populations are present in protected areas, including the Hawtat bani Tamim Ibex Reserve. The population of this reserve has declined by 75% since 2005 due to poaching.[1] In 2022, Saudi Arabia began a reintroduction program in an effort to rescue the population.[66] Saudi Arabia's Nubian ibex are officially protected by a 1979 hunting by-law.[1]
Prior to 2010, surveys suggested a small population in the Red Sea Hills and the areas around Port Sudan. However, due to civil unrest, no recent population estimates have been documented.[1] Sudan's Nubian ibex are listed as a permit-only hunted species under the 1992 Wildlife Conservation Act.[1]
Due to civil unrest, no recent population estimates have been documented.[1]
Nubian ibex live in Egypt's Giza Zoo.[67]
Nubian ibex live in 16 zoos across Israel, including a breeding herd in the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo.[68] They live in 3 zoos across the United Arab Emirates and 1 zoo in Singapore.[69] Nubian ibex live in at least one facility in Oman, the Bait Al Barakah breeding centre. Oman's wild ibex population is genetically distinct from its captive population, suggesting that the captive animals descend from a different population.[70]
Nubian ibex live in one zoo in each of the following countries: Estonia, France, Germany, Poland, and Switzerland.[69]
As of December 2013, at least 34 males and 39 females live across 8 captive facilities; 7 of these facilities are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). They are all descend from ibex that lived in Israel's Yotvata Hai-Bar Nature Reserve.[71] Captive ibex managers worried that one ibex group had hybrid ancestry due to morphological differences from other Nubian ibex, but genetic analysis suggested that they were pure-bred, and that differences were only due to intraspecific genetic variation.[72]
Nubian ibex have been a common image in petroglyphs (rock art), metal work, and pottery across the Middle East for thousands of years.[73] One example is a life-sized image carved in sandstone in Egypt, dated to the Upper Paleolithic.[74] In petroglyphs, ibex are often portrayed as hunted by dogs and human archers. They are also frequently depicted alongside celestial imagery such as a star, sun, cross, or circle.[75]
The ibex's role in artwork has been suggested as representing literal acts like ritual hunts, as well as spiritual and metaphorical concepts such as resurrection, seasonal cycles of rain and drought, and the interplay of life and death. Ibex may have represented ancient Middle Eastern deities such as Dumuzi (Tamuz) and Dushara. They are often identified with the constellation Capricorn in Mesopotamian-Iranian artwork from the 4th Millennium BCE.[75]
A common motif in ancient Middle Eastern art contains a sacred tree, often the Tree of Life, flanked on each side by an ibex. This motif is present across the region, from Iran and Mesopotamia to Arabia and the Horn of Africa.[76][77] It is exemplified by the Cult Stand from Ta-anach from the 10th Century BCE, which also contains two ibex and other nature-themed carvings. It is thought to depict the relationship of Yahweh/El (God) and Asherah, a Semitic, nature-oriented goddess whose essence was later integrated into Judaism.[78][79]
The Biblical heroine Yael's name means "Ibex" in Hebrew. The Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) contains several references to ibex: "The high mountains belong to the ibex" (Psalms 104:18); "A loving female ibex" (Proverbs 5:19). Ibex are one of the species whose horns can be used to construct a Shofar (Jewish religious musical horn): "The shofar that was used on Rosh HaShana in the Temple was made from the straight horn of an ibex, and its mouth, the mouthpiece into which one blows, was plated with gold" (Mishnah Rosh Hashana 3:4).[80] They are a Kosher animal, meaning that, when prepared properly, the ibex can be eaten under religious law.[81] Ibex skin was sometimes used to make parchments in ancient Israel.[82]
Yael (יָעֵל) remains a common name for Jews, and is one of the most popular female baby names in Israel.[83] The Nubian ibex is the symbol of the Israel Nature and Parks Authority (INPA). It was chosen due to its iconic representation of Israeli wildlife, as well as for the resemblance of its rounded horn to a Roman arch, representing local archaeological history. The INPA works to conserve both nature and culture.[84]
Bedouin have historically raised young Nubian ibex in integrated herds with domestic goats, with whom the ibex can viably interbreed.[2] The Ma'aza Bedouin of Egypt's Eastern Desert have named several locations based on ibex presence and behavior.[85] Bedouin have traditionally hunted ibex for food and skin.[86]
In Yemen, the ibex is a longstanding symbol of national identity, representing many positive attributes of the Yemeni people. An annual National Ibex Day, on 22 January, has been proposed to help protect the animal.[87][88]
The Nubian ibex in particular was in the BBC documentary Life, and featured prominently in the popular television documentary series Planet Earth (episode five, "Deserts").[89]
Nubian ibex imagery is prominent in Ecotourism promotion. The Israeli town of Mitzpe Ramon, where habituated ibex are frequently found, features a hotel called the Ibex Inn.[90] Jordan's Wadi Rum features a tour and camping company called Wadi Rum Ibex.[91]
Many Middle Eastern tour companies encourage clients to join them for an opportunity to view these animals in the wild.[92][93][94][95]
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{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of March 2023 (link) Ibex on Hyundai with Tristram's starling at Ein Gedi, Israel The Nubian ibex (Capra nubiana) is a desert-dwelling goat species (Genus Capra) found in mountainous areas of northern and northeast Africa, and the Middle East. It was historically considered to be a subspecies of the Alpine ibex (C. ibex), but is now considered a distinct species. The wild population is estimated at 4,500 mature individuals.
